I have been a recreational sailor for many years, with a particular interest in small sailing craft; therefore much of the content of my 'blog' will be related to this subject.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 10

Layout Plan

Cardboard Template for Aft Side Panels

Frames and Transom Pieces

It’s been a brilliant day; the sun shone, but there was a bitter wind. Therefore I took up residence in the garage to avoid the wind, and placed my temporary workbench there. This consists of a planked panel laid across two homemade trestles. Eight foot by four foot plywood overlaps the edges, which gives me space for cutting out shapes as I jiggle the plywood.

First of all I had to accurately draw outlines of the frames and the aft side panels onto a sheet of plywood, making sure the best side was uppermost. Although I had prepared a layout plan, doing the measurements and cross-checking them, took a long time, and it wasn’t until mid-afternoon that I started cutting the plywood with a jigsaw. I was pleasantly surprised at how stable the 4 millimetre ply was. There were no split edges, and the saw seemed to follow the lines effortlessly.

At 1645 my wife called to say she had made an early evening meal, and by then I felt I needed a break – besides, the light was fading. That marked the end of boatbuilding for a day that had started at 1000. I logged 6 hours and 15 minutes, because I had taken 30 minutes for my lunch break. So far I have spent 21 hours 30 minutes at building ‘Sharpy’ - all of it enjoyable. I am not the fastest builder of boats, and perhaps others could do what I do in half the time, but I wonder if they have half as much pleasure. I avoid using power tools unless I have to; in fact, I only have three power tools: a jigsaw, an electric drill and a rotary sander.